The Word of God Speaks - Are We Listening?

Here's my homily for my first Sunday as pastor of the St. LaSalle Pastorate - bit of an introduction to who I am, and some thoughts on the Bible and prayer :)  

Location: Holy Trinity Catholic Church (Luxemburg, IA) – 4 p.m. Saturday

                Saint Joseph Catholic Church (Rickardsville, IA) – 6 p.m. Saturday

                Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church (Sherrill, IA) – 8 a.m. Sunday

                Holy Cross Catholic Church (Holy Cross, IA) – 10 a.m. Sunday

Date: Sunday July 13^th, 2014 (15^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A)

READINGS:

1^st Reading: Isaiah 55:10-11

Resp. Psalm: Ps. 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14

2^nd Reading: Romans 8:18-23

Gospel: Matthew 13:1-23 (OR Matthew 13:1-9 {short form})

FOCUS: A good way to prepare for Mass is to read the readings before you come. 

FUNCTION: Engage in opportunities for spiritual growth like lectio divina.

          It’s a privilege to be here this weekend as your new pastor :)  This is an exciting opportunity for me, especially since I’m a brand-new pastor.  I’m pretty sure both Fr. Ray and Fr. Jose were both pastors before they were assigned as pastor of the St. LaSalle Pastorate.  So, you get to put up with a priest who’s still learning the ropes :)  Please be patient with me. :)  As I’m sure some of you are wondering, my last name is simply pronounced “Diehm” – one syllable.  It’s not “Di-ehm” or “Dime” or “De-ham” – just “Diehm,” one syllable.  And whereas the previous two priests both went by their first names, my preference is to go by my last name – so I prefer to be called “Fr. Diehm” rather than “Fr. Noah.”  Maybe it sounds a little formal, but you’ll soon discover I’m really not a terrible formal person, except when I need to be. 

          Before I talk about the great readings we have this weekend, I thought I’d take the time to introduce myself.  I was born and raised in Dubuque, and my parents still live there.  I was involved in Catholic education practically all my life – grade school, high school, college, and of course seminary.  After my four years of college at Clarke in Dubuque, I was in seminary for five years – I spent one year at Loras College (Iowa’s premiere Catholic college (: ) with the St. Pius X college seminary program, and then spent the next four years in southern Indiana at the Saint Meinrad Seminary & School of Theology, where I was trained predominately by the Benedictine monks of the Saint Meinrad Archabbey in Saint Meinrad, IN.          

While I was getting my M. Div. (or Masters of Divinity, a ministerial degree that all priests have in one form or another), I was ordained a transitional deacon (which is the step immediately before being ordained a priest) on April 10^th, 2010 and was then ordained a priest three years ago on June 25^th, 2011 at the age of 27.  And I recently celebrated a birthday this past Tuesday (move day), and I’m now a very happy 31 year-old priest and your new pastor :)

          My appointment from the Archbishop as pastor is for a six-year term, with the possibility of being renewed once.  So, I look forward to spending at least six, if not twelve years with you here as Pastor of the St. LaSalle Pastorate and Pastoral Coordinator of LaSalle Catholic Schools.  You’ve been forewarned J  And during my time here, I look forward to visiting with many of you when you invite me to your house for supper (FYI – that’s a not-so-subtle suggestion (: ), or while having coffee with some of you after daily Mass, which I’ve been able to do this past week in Sherrill, Luxemburg, and Holy Cross.

          I’m a big fan of film and music.  I enjoy watching and playing basketball, although I haven’t played much basketball since I left seminary.  I’m an extrovert, but I’m usually ready to not see or talk to anybody after about 8:30 or 9 o’clock at night.  I plan to work hard in this assignment as your pastor, and I hope to be surrounded by other hard-working Catholics.  You’ll get to know me better once I’ve been here a little longer, and I look forward to building the kingdom of God here in our pastorate during my time as pastor :)

          Now for a few thoughts on the Sunday readings :)  I think the readings this weekend challenge us to think about how we receive (or fail to receive) God’s word spoken in our midst.  Please pardon me for using the long form of the Gospel but I thought it was worth it for us to hear the full passage.  Most of us – myself included – don’t often give enough consideration to the fact that when we hear the reader proclaim the readings, we’re actually listening not to the words of a human (although the Bible has many authors), but rather to the words of God.  Just think, at every Mass, it is God who speaks to us through His word.  We believe it’s His inspired word, because after every reading, we hear the reader say, “The word of the Lord,” or we hear the priest say, “The Gospel of the Lord.”  Of course, there was a human author who was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write the sacred text; and because of that inspiration, we believe that it’s God who’s actually the author of the books of the Bible, such that it’s God who’s really speaking to us when we hear His word proclaimed.

          The Mass gives us the opportunity to hear the voice of God.  It’s a good to stop and consider how well we prepare ourselves to listen to His voice.  One good practice is going through the readings at home before you come to Mass, or arrive early enough that you can sit and read them before you hear them.  And if you’re technology-savvy, you might appreciate looking the readings up online, at the website, usccb.org, or using any number of fancy “apps” to read the readings on a tablet such as the Apple iPad or the Kindle Fire.

 

          In my own preparation for preaching, I like to sit with the readings early on in the week (on Monday or Tuesday) and ask God what He wants to tell me, and what message He wants me to share with others.  If you ever wanted to better appreciate what a priest does, you might sit with the readings and think about what kind of homily you’d preach if you were the preacher.  Or maybe you just want to sit down, read the readings, and focus on 3-4 sentences that really speak to you.  That’s a practice commonly called “lectio divina,” in Latin, or “divine reading” in English.  It’s a practice of prayerfully reading the sacred words of the Bible and considering how God’s word might be applied to your life.    

          God is still speaking to the world, but we are often too busy or we don’t try to open the ears of our heart to listen to what He has to say.  We all need to take time to slow down and listen for the voice of God. 

          So I invite you to do that this week – take some time and prepare yourself to come to Mass next Sunday; read the readings before you get to Mass, or arrive early enough so that you can read them before you hear them; ask God what He wants to say to you; ask Him what He wants you to share with others.  When we open our ears to hear God’s word, we’ll probably be amazed at what we hear.                             

3rd Sunday of Lent - God Made You for More!

Greetings!  Here's the homily I preached for the 3rd Sunday of Lent - it was to the participants on the Teens Encounter Christ retreat #544 at Beckman Catholic High School.  Just remember - God made you for more! 

READINGS:

1^st Reading: Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15
Resp. Psalm: Ps. 103:1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8, 11
2^nd Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12
Gospel: Luke 13:1-9

FOCUS: God is relational; He cares about our wellbeing, and wants us to experience new life. 

FUNCTION: Grow in your relationship with God through regular times for prayer.

          It’s a blessing to have all of you here this weekend!  As we’ve said, none of you are here by accident.  You are here because God has a purpose for you and because He’s the One who called you here – because He wants to reveal His love to you; because He wants to draw you closer to Himself, and because He knew you before you were conceived and while you were still in your mother’s womb, and He has created you to be His beloved child.  You are not an accident – no one is an accident in God’s eyes – and you are not here on accident. 

          I know it sounds rather cliché, but God has a plan.  Do I know what that plan is for you?  Unfortunately, no, I don’t – I’m not God; I don’t know what God’s plan for your life is per se – but I do know it’s good!  It’s so good!  I know it’s better than anything you can possibly think of or imagine – because He knows us better than we know ourselves, because He created us.  The Bible even tells us that all the hairs on our head have been counted – God knows us that well!  And because He created us, He also has a plan for our lives – a plan for greatness.

          The world, however, would have us be mired in mediocrity – you only need to look at the contents of reality TV shows to understand that fact.  These shows don’t call us to be great and heroic and strong and virtuous; they just call us to be so-so or unique or odd or funny.  Think about it – is there anyone on these reality TV shows who’s a good role model?  I’m sorry if you like some of these shows, but I don’t think so.  A lot of the people on these shows are just – well – weird.  Sorry, no offense to Honey Boo Boo fans. J  When I see these shows, I often stop and think to myself, “Surely God made us for more than all the ridiculous stuff happening on here!”  And it’s so true – God has made us for more – for so much more than the ridiculousness of life as it’s depicted on reality TV. 

          What am I getting at?  I’m getting at the fact that God and the world have two very different visions for our lives.  God wants us to reach our full potential and become truly great people, but the world would have us settle for having fun and not really pursuing anything terribly worthwhile.  If we follow the voice of the world, we’ll end up in spiritual chains, like the Israelites ended up being slaves in Egypt.  But just like He did for the Israelites, God also wants to draw us out of our slavery to mediocrity – a spiritual slavery we allow ourselves to be drawn into by listening to the voice of the world instead of the voice of God – and lead us into spiritual freedom.  God wants to break the chains that bind us and lead us into a new and better life.

          In the first reading, God looked on the slavery that His chosen people had to endure while in Egypt and said, “I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry of complaint against their slave drivers, so I know well what they are suffering.  Therefore, I have come down to rescue them from the hands of the Egyptians and lead them out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.”  In so many ways, the Jewish story of the Exodus is also the Christian story of what God has done for us in Christ!

          Think about it, how did Jesus’ public life begin?  After He was baptized, He was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by Satan.  We hear that story on every First Sunday of Lent.  And after He returned, He started His public ministry.  The first words of Jesus’ public ministry were these – “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (See Matt. 4:17).  Did you know that the “promised land” that God led the Israelites to through the desert is a foreshadowing of the true Promised Land – the kingdom of heaven – where God wants to lead all people who are willing to follow and believe?  So the very beginning of Jesus’ public ministry is practically a summary of the real meaning of the Book of Exodus – repent of your slavery to sin, because God wants to lead you to heaven!

          God did it back in the days of the Book of Exodus, He did it at the very beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, and He wants to do it again now.  He always wants to lead us out of spiritual slavery and into spiritual freedom, because He’s a God of relationships, a God of love.  God is intrinsically relational by His nature – He is a community of Persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: three divine Persons living in perfect unity as one God.  And because God is relational, He always calls us into relationship with Himself.        

          In the first reading, when Moses asked for God’s name, how did God identify Himself to Moses?  God said, ‘“I am the God of your fathers,” he continued, “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob.’”  The fact that God referred to Himself in relation to Moses’ forefathers means that God is a God who wants to establish relationships with the people He’s created.  And that’s exactly what God wants to do in our lives.  But in order to establish and grow in a relationship with God, we need to examine our other relationships; for instance, getting too wrapped up in the world doesn’t help us deepen our relationship with God and our relationships with others can keep us from growing.  And so now’s a good weekend to think about our relationships – which ones help us get closer to God and which ones keep are keeping us away?

          Trust me, I know that’s a tough examination.  But you have to know this: God loves you SO MUCH MORE than anyone else – more than your parents, more than your boyfriend or girlfriend, more than anyone.  And as much as you’re looking for fulfillment, the only one who will fulfill you is the One who made you.     Earlier this afternoon you signed the Book of the Covenant and made a profession of faith as a sign that you’re ready and willing to make a commitment to Christ.  I’m not saying that’s always going to be easy or fun; in fact, it may be one of the hardest things you’ve ever done.  But if we never did things that were hard, would we ever grow? 

          Dear friends, God wants to take you places!  God wants to lead you out of the chains of mediocrity and into spiritual freedom.  And so I encourage you to embrace the freedom the Lord wants to offer you.  I hope you’ll take the chance – starting here and now – to turn to God in prayer and grow in that relationship that God wants to form with you.  I know your life will be better for it.                

 

 

              

 

 

1st Sunday of Lent - Remain Strong Against Temptation!

Homily for the 1st Sunday of Lent.  Feel free to share questions, comments, thoughts, etc. in the comments section.  God bless! 

READINGS:

1^st Reading: Deuteronomy 26:4-10

Resp. Psalm: Ps. 91:1-2, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15
2^nd Reading: Romans 10:8-13
Gospel: Luke 4:1-13

FOCUS: Our Christian pilgrimage through life is filled with “spiritual warfare.” 

FUNCTION: Practice the Lenten disciplines in order to be strong in moments of temptation. 
 

          The Gospel reading for this First Sunday of Lent is always the story of Jesus being driven by the Holy Spirit into the desert to be tempted by Satan.  It wasn’t quite a desert, but a group of parishioners and I recently made our annual mission trip to Haiti to visit and support St. Francis Xavier’s sister parish, Holy Cross, in Fonds-Verrettes, Haiti.  Being down there was like a desert experience – drinkable water is a precious commodity, there didn’t seem to be too many paved roads, and I only took 3 showers in 8 days.  It was a hard trip for several reasons, but we didn’t go there to relax, or to see the sights, or to sunbathe.  We went to Haiti in order to serve the needs of the people – to provide supplies and support and help with things that needed to get done. 

          One of the best things we did was help out at the clinic in Oriani – a small village about an hour’s drive away from Holy Cross parish in Fonds-Verrettes; there at the clinic, an energetic little 50-year-old religious sister – Sr. MaryAnn – sees approximately 60-70 patients a day.  While we were at the clinic, the doctor and the nurse on our team (and others, too) worked hard to see about 140 patients in the course of a 10 hour work day.  Those of us who weren’t involved in seeing patients accomplished others things like painting different parts of the clinic that needed painting, as well as visiting the school in order to deliver supplies and talk to the students, as well as taking the time to toss around the Frisbee and play soccer with some of the kids who also showed up at the clinic.

          During our time in Haiti, we were often stretched and challenged by our circumstances – whether it was the bus getting stuck in the water as we drove through a stream while driving from Port-au-Prince to Fonds-Verrettes (thanks be to God for the bulldozer that pushed us out!), or the lack of electricity at the clinic in Oriani, or the hike up to the waterfall for a “shower” in Fonds-Verrettes.  There were lots of things that were difficult, but it was all worth it.  I believe these kinds of experiences shape us and transform us; they give us perspective and make us appreciate the blessings of life here in America that we so often take for granted.  In short, I had a tremendous experience on the mission trip to Haiti – not only do people really benefit from our great generosity, but every person who goes on the trip is changed for the better by the experience; and as we became fond of saying, “It’s all a part of the experience.” J 

 

          In the same way, we need “desert experiences” like the experience Our Lord had of being in the desert for 40 days and 40 nights.  There’s a reason why this Gospel passage is always the first Gospel that we hear in Lent – our own experience of Lent is called to echo the experience of Our Lord in the desert.  When we fast, particularly on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, we’re supposed to experience hunger – it’s helps us appreciate the fact that millions and millions – if not billions – of people throughout the world experience hunger on a daily basis and regularly go to bed hungry; when we abstain from eating meat on Fridays, it’s supposed to be a sacrifice because meat is probably a staple in most of our diets; and when we give things up for Lent, it’s supposed to be a struggle to maintain that discipline, because we know there are plenty of things in our lives that don’t contribute to making us better people.  Lent is supposed to do all of this and more.  It’s our annual 40-day retreat every year – our annual time to examine our lives, repent of our sins, and try to become better people. 

          But, of course it’s not easy; in fact, it’s often anything but.  The typical disciplines of Lent – prayer, fasting, almsgiving, making sacrifices – they’re all supposed to help us become better people – people who are more humble, loving, compassionate, forgiving, patient, and generally more virtuous.  But just as Jesus was tempted in the desert, we, too, will be tempted during Lent.  That doesn’t mean that we should give in to temptation; just the opposite – it means we should fight all the more to resist and remain steadfast. 

          Our Lord experienced three temptations in the desert that were specifically designed for Him; likewise, we, too, will experience temptations this Lent that will be specifically designed for us – maybe it’s the temptation to eat meat on Fridays, or to indulge in the thing or activity we gave up for Lent, or to not observe the fasting that the Church asks us to observe specifically on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, or maybe it will be something altogether different – something that the Evil One has cooked up just for us.  And then we’ll have a choice to make – will we give into the temptation, or will we resist the temptation because we know it’s the right thing to do?

          Our Christian pilgrimage through life is filled with what’s often referred to as “spiritual warfare” – an invisible battle that we constantly face both against the dark spiritual forces known as demons (aka, fallen angels or evil spirits) and against our own disordered and sinful desires.  Saint John of the Cross, along with other great spiritual masters of the Church, have often identified three great enemies of the spiritual life – the world, the flesh, and the Devil.  The Gospel this weekend highlights the activity of the Devil (aka, the Evil One or Satan); just as he tempted Our Lord, he’ll also tempt us.  First of all, we need to remember that the Devil actually exists and that he continues to be active in the world.  The Church teaches that Satan is a real, personal being – a fallen angel, a being created by God, but who fell from grace and who led other angels to fall with him in their rebellion against God and His angelic army.

          Beware: temptations will come this Lent, whether from the world, the flesh, or the Devil, and we need to be prepared to fight the spiritual battle, to engage in “spiritual warfare” for our good and the good of others.  Lent gives us a few weapons in this warfare, the most powerful of which are the sacraments – namely, the Most Holy Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  So stay close to the Real Presence of Jesus in Holy Communion – sign up for Eucharistic adoration during our 40 Hours devotion or make an effort to attend Mass during the week.  Likewise, receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation – give your sins over to God and God will show you His mercy and love.  Make more time for prayer and quiet, discipline yourself through fasting, if possible, try to be even more generous in the collection basket, and ask trusted friends to help keep you accountable to your Lenten sacrifice.  These practices will keep you strong on the spiritual battlefield, and will help you conquer both the Devil and all his temptations.  This Lent, may God strengthen you in the face of every temptation.         

Our Call to Evangelization for the Salvation of Souls

Homily for the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)
    

READINGS:

First Reading: Job 7:1-4, 6-7
Responsorial Psalm: Ps. 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23
Gospel: Mark 1:29-39

FOCUS: Evangelization simply involves sharing our Christian hope with others. 

FUNCTION: Bring hope to others by sharing with them the good news of the Gospel.

          How many of you have ever met someone who seemed to embody the sentiments of the first reading?  Have you ever felt that way yourself?  The first reading from the Book of Job certainly does NOT give us a very happy vision of human life.  In fact, Job’s estimation of human life in general – and of his own life in particular – give us a quite hopeless and depressing and miserable picture of human existence. 

          Speaking about his own life, he says, “I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.  My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle; they come to an end without hope.  Remember that my life is like the wind; I shall not see happiness again.”  And to these sentiments, I would like to reply, “Hey, that’s the spirit!  Way to think positively! What an encouraging message!”  Ugghh.  Maybe not.  There’s not much hope to be found in Job’s estimation of the quality of life.

          This kind of extreme negativism about life can infect all of us at one point or another.  But for some people, this extremely depressing evaluation of human life is the only way they know how to think.  They approach life from the perspective that they are irrevocably doomed, that life is miserable, that nothing good will ever come their way.  Perhaps you’ve met some people like this.  They’re no fun to be around, that’s for sure.  And what they need most – pardon the terrible metaphor – is a triple espresso of hope!  They need to know that life is worth living, that life has value, and that it’s possible to find good, even in the midst of the darkness.  And this is where we – as Christians – are called to bring the light of Christ into the darkness of people’s lives. 

          Jesus gave us a mission to bring a message of hope to those who have none, to proclaim the Good News to those who are so desperate to hear it, to be a light in the darkness, and to help people know – in the words of the responsorial psalm – that God “heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds.”  We have been called by Almighty God – through His Only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ – to be an evangelizing Church, to be a Church that boldly proclaims the Good News of the Gospel to the people of the world. 

          And sometimes we have done a really terrible job at this.  I know I’ve talked about this before, but we HAVE TO, HAVE TO, HAVE TO get over this false notion that religion is a purely private matter and that our faith shouldn’t be shared with others.  Because that’s the very philosophy that the Devil would have us profess, so that others don’t come to know the Good News of Jesus’ victory over sin and death and darkness and despair.  If we don’t get over that notion that religion is private, then so many people around us will continue to live lives that feel hopeless, depressing, and miserable – as was Job’s experience of life.

          Saint Paul gave us a lot of insights into the task of evangelization in the second reading.  He said, “Although I am free in regard to all, I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible.  To the weak, I became weak, to win over the weak.  I have become all things to all, to save at least some.”  And about preaching the Gospel, he also said, “…woe to me if I do not preach it!”  We have a tremendous and powerful example of commitment to evangelization in the person and ministry of Saint Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles! 

          He never shrank from sharing the Good News of Christ with those around him, whether it was the members of the Churches he wrote to, or the people of the cities he visited, or even with royal officials and those in authority.  He never shrank from proclaiming the Gospel to anyone, because he knew that the message of the Gospel was meant for everyone and not just a select few!  God’s salvation is open to all people, and Saint Paul wanted everyone – or at least as many people as possible – to be saved by the grace and mercy of our loving God and Father, and of His Anointed One, Jesus the Christ, our Lord and Savior.

          Unlike Saint Paul, sometimes we “overthink” what it means to evangelize, or we make it out to be something more difficult than it actually is.  Evangelization simply involves sharing our Christian hope with others.  And that’s not so difficult.  It’s actually quite easy.  So how can we evangelize?

          We can share our hope with the people around us who disbelieve in God’s existence, and show them that God has revealed Himself to us through Jesus of Nazareth, God’s beloved Son.  We can share our faith and hope with sick persons, inviting them to see how the Crucified Lord shares in their sufferings and can make their suffering redemptive and life-giving.  We can share our hope with fallen-away Catholics and invite them to come back to Church to embrace both a personal and a communal relationship with God in and through the Church that Jesus established as His Body.  We can share with our family members the hope and the joy that we have because Jesus is in our life and we life by faith in His never-ending love and mercy.  I could go on, but I think you get the point.  Evangelization is not hard.  It’s simply a matter of being willing to share with others the hope that we have as Christians.

          But before we can share our hope and faith with others, we need to truly possess it ourselves.  As the saying goes, “You cannot give what you do not have.” And so we can ask ourselves: are we really living in the world as people of faith?  Is the virtue of hope present in our lives?  Do we love the people around us as Christ has loved us?  Do we really believe that Jesus has conquered the power of sin and death, and that new life is possible in Him?  In order for us to impart faith, hope, and love to others, we must have first received it ourselves.  Only then can we hand it on to those around us, so that they might know the same joy.

          Very soon, we’ll begin the Liturgy of the Eucharist, where we will ultimately receive the Body and Blood of Our Blessed Lord.  And as we heard in the Gospel – that Jesus went from town to town preaching, curing illnesses and diseases, and casting out demons – let’s allow this Blessed Sacrament that we receive to change us from the inside out, so that we, too, might reach out to others and help them to experience the healing, liberating and saving power of Christ.

 And let’s answer our call to be an evangelizing Church.  There are still many people in the world who share Job’s unfortunate sentiments about life.  To them, life is often harsh and cold, empty and difficult.  And so, following the example of Saint Paul, let’s share with the people of the world around us the Good News of our Christian faith, so that we might all be transformed by the light of God’s heavenly kingdom of peace, joy, justice, and love.                                                         

The Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Model for Spiritual Growth

Homily for the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God (January 1st, 2012)

READINGS:
First Reading: Numbers 6:22-27
Responsorial Psalm: Ps. 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Second Reading: Galatians 4:4-7
Gospel: Luke 2:16-21

FOCUS: Mary teaches us about how to respond to God’s vocation in our lives. 
FUNCTION: Imitate Mary’s contemplative example of prayer to achieve spiritual growth.

The Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Model for Spiritual Growth

          Well, we’ve made it!  2011 is (nearly) over and we now stand on the threshold of 2012, a whole new calendar year: a year of new opportunities and possibilities, a year to make better choices than we did last year, a year to celebrate the hope that we have for the future.  For so many people (and for so many of us), a new year brings with it new hope.  Many people choose to make a “New Year’s Resolutions.”  Some might say, “This year, I’m going to eat more healthy food,” or “This year, I want to exercise more and stay in better shape,” or “This year, I want to devote more time to prayer and works of charity,” or “This year, I’m going to try harder to get along with the difficult people in my life.”  Certainly there are many more resolutions that people might make.  And some people might even make more than one if they’re feeling ambitious and motivated.    

          How about a simple show of hands?  Alright, raise your hand if you’ve already come up with a New Year’s Resolution.  OK, very nice.  Some of us have a New Year’s Resolution in mind, and some of us are still thinking.  It’s easy to find plenty of articles and stories and tips online about making New Year’s Resolutions.  But since we’re all here in Church on New Year’s Day, let’s consider what the Church proposes for how we should celebrate the New Year, because there’s a lot of wisdom to be gained from the Church’s perspective.     

          The first thing we should notice is that, every January 1^st, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.  It’s the same every year: January 1^st will always be the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God.  In this way, the Church tells us at the beginning of every year, “Do you want to celebrate the New Year appropriately?  Look to Mary!  Do you want to make a change in your life this year?  Look to Mary!  Do you want to become a better, more virtuous person this year?  Look to Mary!” 

          But why do we or should we look to Mary so often?  Why does the Church celebrate so many Marian feast days over the course of the year?  Why does the Church always hold up Mary as the model for us to imitate?  It’s because she always…without fail…leads us to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior!  And since the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Christmas with an octave (a single celebration extended over a period of eight days), it’s only fitting that on the eighth day we should honor the Mother of Jesus our Savior: Mary, the Virgin of Nazareth, the “handmaid of the Lord” that God the Father chose and blessed, among all women, to be the mother of His only-begotten Son.

          And so here on the threshold of 2012, we look to Mary for our inspiration and our model as we move forward into the New Year.  Here’s one New Year’s Resolution we might consider making in regard to our faith: “This year, I will focus on how I can continue to grow in the spiritual life.”  And what a beautiful example and model of continual spiritual growth we have in Mary, the Mother of God!

          The Gospel for today gives us one simple sentence…one simple verse so worthy of our consideration and imitation: “And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.”  In this one simple verse, we gain a small glimpse into the interior, spiritual life of Mary, the Mother of God.  At her deepest core, Mary was a contemplative.  She wasn’t someone who just went through life without thinking and reflecting on things.  No, just the opposite: throughout her life, she constantly reflected on what God was doing both in and through her and in and through her only Son, Jesus of Nazareth, the One destined to be the world’s Savior and Redeemer.  Mary had a deep and rich interior prayer life.  It was there, in the inner recesses of her Immaculate Heart, that she treasured what God was doing in the world and reflected on how God was active in her life.

          We might call this kind of prayer “theological reflection,” a discipline that involves a concentrated examination of life, through prayer, to see and understand how God is at work.  God is living and moving and active in the world, and if our prayer is going to be fruitful and if we want to grow spiritually, we need to be able to see and understand how God is at work in our lives.  Theological reflection is really a matter of living our lives with eyes of faith. 

          So we might ask ourselves: do we make seeing and understanding how God is at work in our lives a priority?  Are we on the lookout for God’s activity?  Are we looking at our lives with eyes of faith?  How we answer those questions will determine to what extent our spiritual lives grow in 2012.  Mary’s example gives us a kind of “game plan” for spiritual growth in the New Year.

          Let me detail for you some elements of that game plan.  First, we have to be in relationship with God through prayer to see how God is at work in our lives.  Offering a brief prayer to God in the morning (or sometime near the beginning of our day) is a good practice: “God, please give me eyes to see You today.  Help me to be mindful of the ways in which You are at work in the midst of my daily life.”  Secondly, we have to go through our day believing and trusting that God is always present to us: while paying bills, while doing dishes, while taking care of kids, while working in the office, while working outside, while we eat, and so on.           

Third, we have to allow ourselves to be present to God.  This also involves prayer, and spending at least some time during the day for silence and reflection, allowing our hearts and minds to be present to God who is present to us.  And fourth, we might conclude with the “examen of consciousness,” a prayer developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola as a way to find God in all things and to cooperate more fully with His grace.  It’s a practical examination of the day where we prayerfully examine the ways in which we either responded or failed to respond to God’s grace in our lives.  A simple search online would allow you to find out more information about the “examen of consciousness” prayer. 

          Doing these very practical things could make a big difference for our spiritual growth in 2012.  Not only that, it could also help us live our vocation more fully or help us understand what vocation God is calling us to.  Mary, the Mother of God, gives us a beautiful example of responding graciously to the vocation that God has planned for us.  And since we’re beginning the Vocations Crucifix Program this weekend in the parishes of our Spires of Faith cluster, now is an excellent time to follow Mary’s example of prayer so that we, too, might respond more fully (or for the first time) to our God-given vocation.

          And so as we stand here on the threshold of 2012, let us pray to Holy Mary, the Mother of God, that she might help us grow in our spiritual lives, find God in the midst of daily life, and truly live our vocation, as together we pray:

          “Hail, Mary….”